Abundantly Pardoned

Instead of trusting God, Elijah went on the run when Jezebel threatened to kill him.  (1 Kings 19)  He then hid in a cave, and when God asked him what he was doing there and Elijah told Him, God then directed him to go stand out on the mountain in His presence.  What did Elijah do?  He stayed in the cave!  1 Samuel 15:22 NIV tells us what the Lord loves: “’Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the Lord?  To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.’”  A powerful wind tore apart the mountain, and then came an earthquake and a fire, but the Lord wasn’t in any of those things. The Lord then gently whispered. Elijah pulled his cloak over his face, then stood in the mouth of the cave.  The Lord had tried to get Elijah to come out into His presence, and it took a whisper to get him as far as the mouth of the cave!  We must do whatever it takes to help people find their way out of their caves and into the embrace of their Lord God Almighty.  What we will do depends upon how God will use us and if we are willing to obey Him.  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  Seek His will in all you do, and He will direct your paths.”  (Proverbs 2:5-6 NLT)

“My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.”(Psalm 38:4) Make me anew, Lord, make me anew,I give back the promises I took from You; I ignored all Your words, turned my back on Your throne,I went down a path that I traveled alone. Wash my soul clean, Lord, wash my soul clean, Destroy all the memories of things that I’ve seen; I walked into darkness and opened my eyes, I traded my conscience for Satan’s dark lies. Down on my knees, Lord, down on my knees, Accept my repentance and heartfelt pleas; Your child has come home and is thirsty for You, Please pour out Your Spirit, Lord, make me brand new. I am Your vessel, Lord, broken and stained, Take me back home where Your Majesty reigns; Downcast and weary, I kneel at Your feet, Create me anew, Lord, humble and sweet. I know my transgressions, my sins tell the tale, You teach me Your wisdom in heaven, not hell; Please bring restoration, create a pure heart, Forever I’ll serve You, Lord, never to part. Note: this poem was inspired by Psalm 38,Psalm 51 and the time before I found my way to my Lord Jesus. This poem is for Him. Thank You, Lord Jesus! Keneta

“There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to Him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.” (Proverbs 6:16-19 NIV) I know a woman who claims to be a Christian. She uses foul language, she lies, she gossips, her feet are swift to cause mischief, and she has no obvious relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. She goes to church and also teaches Bible School at her church. Would it be considered judging her to wonder about the kind of ambassador she is for our Lord Jesus? Everyone says that church is a hospital for sinners but, in my opinion, we shouldn’t make an appearance in church to confess on Sundays, then go back to our sinful ways that afternoon or the next day. What kind of impression would we be making on the lost who hear the foul language, the lies, the gossip and the trouble-making? As Christians, we are supposed to be in this world, but not of this world. If we have a full relationship with Christ, it will show in everything we do and say. Each day we need to take a good look at ourselves through the eyes of the lost to see what they see. We need to know how we look to the world and to our Lord God Almighty.

“Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.” (Proverbs 12:19 NIV) One of the most important aspects of a church, a marriage, any relationship, government leaders and the work place is “truthful lips.” Jesus Christ says, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” (John 14:6 NIV) Are our co-workers, brothers-and -sisters-in-Christ, boyfriends, husbands, children and government leaders imitators of Christ? Can the church, the work place, the government and our relationships function in a good, sturdy manner if someone is telling lies? Nothing bothers me more than someone telling lies and then lying when confronted about their lies. The deception gets deeper and deeper and the trouble gets thicker and more heated. We not only need to tell the truth, we need to be able to accept the truth from others. Lies are quickly uncovered. It’s a really bad idea to tell a lie. “Truthful lips endure forever.” John 8:32 tells us that the truth will set us free. When Jesus spoke of truth, Pilate asked, “What is truth?” (John 18:38) When it comes to worldly truth, I feel like asking the same thing, don’t you? But eternal truth—our Lord Jesus Christ—what glorious, beauty and grace!

Sometimes it‘s difficult to forget the past, isn’t it? It’s difficult to forget all the things we’ve done that we now know were wrong. And each day we find ourselves not being the Christians we know we should be. Satan can use our guilt and the fact that we can’t forgive ourselves as a way of trying to make us believe that God hasn’t forgiven us. “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead.” (Philippians 3:13 NIV) The apostle Paul was right. We need to let go of the sins of our past and strive to live a life that will result in life eternal. God has forgiven us. Truly. Fully. Oh, the amazing grace of our Lord Jesus Christ! “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 NIV) We need to let go of our sins and accept this wonderful grace. Since God forgives us, why can’t we forgive ourselves? Why do we continue to cling to the sins we have left behind? Why do we continue to feel guilty? “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on Him and receive eternal life.” (I Timothy 1:15-16 NIV) Will you allow Christ Jesus to display His unlimited patience in you so that others will believe on Him? Allow that amazing grace to shine from you onto all others.

This is a letter to my dear sisters-in-Christ at Hesler Assembly of God. I feel so connected to you through the Holy Spirit, and I hope to one day meet all of you. The workings of the Holy Spirit never cease to amaze me, and this weekend He has placed each one of you on my heart. In John 16:15 Jesus says, “The Spirit will tell you whatever He receives from Me.” (NLT) What the Holy Spirit is telling me is “Hallelujah!” as He brings you to my heart. You are bringing our Lord joy, and I feel that joy in my heart. Dear sisters, share the joy with all others. Don’t tuck it away in your hearts. May God greatly bless you!

Every woman faces different temptations, and every woman either resists the temptation or gives into it. The important thing is to not place ourselves into situations in which we come face-to-face with our temptations. Temptations have a way of dragging us back down into dark places we thought we had left behind. It takes time for Christ to make us strong enough to stand up to temptations and declare, “Away from me, Satan!” (Matthew 4:10 NIV) Satan wants us to give in. He wants to keep us down in those dark places, so he’s going to watch for just the right moment to spring into action. 1 Peter 5:8 (NIV) tells us, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” We must watch for those situations and back away from them, leaning on Christ’s strength. If we resist the devil, he will flee from us. (James 4:7 NIV) Satan makes the temptation seem so enticing, and we need to see through the false front and into the darkness before it reaches out and pulls us into the swirling depths. Whatever your temptation, resist, dear sisters.

This world is obsessed with looking 20-years-old forever, no matter what it takes.  Many women buy products or do things so that they’ll look younger (I, myself, mix Lubriderm lotion with witch hazel lotion and smooth it under my eyes every morning and every night. No sags or wrinkles. I’ve been using it for years. Ah, vanity! Thy name is woman!).  Aging is a natural process of life, and we should look forward to the years when we don’t feel that we’re supposed to “strut our funky stuff” by wearing shorts that are 12 inches above our wrinkled knee caps or high heels that throw our lumbosacral spine out of alignment.  And as our bodies mature, so do our hearts and spirits as we grow in our walk with the Lord. When I’m at my elderly mom’s house and she’s watching old reruns of “Lawrence Welk”, I sometimes find myself enjoying some of that accordion playing and tap dancing.  Yes, world, I am 53!  Aging with Lawrence Welk?  Well, it’s much easier than aging with the Rolling Stones!  “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth.  And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see Him with my own eyes—I, and not another.  How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27 NIV)

I have a small framed reproduction of that beautiful painting of Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane .  In the background you can see John, James and Peter asleep on the outskirts of the garden.  That’s us, ladies!  We lead such busy lives, we’re out there asleep on the outskirts of the garden as Jesus prays without us.  What do we do when we’re sleepy in the mornings, tired at night and running all day?  I’m in the process of “reconditioning” my prayer life.  I pray a lot all through my busy days and—I hate to admit this—occasionally I “schedule” time to be alone with my Lord, as if I’m scheduling a meeting! I don’t know about you ladies, but it’s not working for me.  I want my alone one-on-one time with the Father, Son and Spirit.  I want (and need) the Spirit interceding for me, praying for me, revealing God’s will to me, filling me to overflowing.  I want to be alone at the feet of my Lord Jesus.  When life gets so cluttered that we’re on the outskirts of the garden, something is wrong.  Our priorities are askew.  “Then He returned to His disciples and found them sleeping.  ‘Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?’ He asked Peter.  ‘Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.  The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’” (Matthew 26:40-41 NIV) Let’s not lurk on the outskirts of the garden.

In Matthew 17:20 (NIV) Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move.  Nothing will be impossible for you.”  Some women are mountain movers; some women are mountain mover triers; some women sit and wait for the mountains to move; some women don’t believe the mountains can be moved.  Dear sisters, if that mountain is to be moved, we have to believe.  Do we believe strongly enough to go to God in prayer?  When we go to God in prayer, do we expose our hearts completely to Him and let Him know that we truly believe He can move mountains?  When I had a malignant brain tumor at the age of fifteen (technically called a “grade II Astrocytoma of the cerebellum” and described by the neurosurgeon as “a huge, massive firm tumor.”), mountain movers were praying for me.  They believed that God would heal me, and He moved that mountain.  The neurosurgeon removed the tumor, no “cobalt treatments” were given, and I was sent home.  It was felt that, if I lived, I would always have trouble with my walking and use of my left side.  Well, let me give a big whoop and a hallelujah and tell the world that our God is a God of miracles! Our God CAN move mountains!  As I write this, I am 53-years-old, and I  recovered completely from all my physical problems not long after my surgery!  I love my Lord God Almighty, the Great Physician! I hear so many people literally burying someone as soon as they hear a bad prognosis.  Those people can tear down or destroy the faith of that sick person.  Do you believe that our Lord God Almighty heals the sick, raises the dead, drives out demons and saves our souls?  I ask again—DO YOU BELIEVE?  Are you a mountain mover?  Is your faith the kind of faith listed in Hebrews chapter 11?  If your answer is no, please go before the throne of our Lord God Almighty and ask Him to teach you mountain moving faith.  Then watch the mountains move.